MYSTERY OF THE SCOWLING BOY

by Phyllis A. Whitney ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 2, 1973

The suspense lies not so much in trying to solve the mystery, as in trying to determine exactly what the mystery might be. The collusion between not-so-dear Cousin Daphne and visiting business agent Harry Mercer is obvious from the first, and as soon as young Jan learns that her grandfather's handyman Joe Reed once visited a museum, she suspects that he's not what he seems either (after all, what kind of handyman frequents museums?). The question is how the many unsettling happenings in the Oliver household fit together -- the threatening phone calls received by glamorous (but gracious) actress Alanna Graham, the locked strong box kept by Alanna's son Stephen (the scowling boy) in a deserted cabin, the statues heard moving around at night in old great-grand-father Button's studio, the mysterious death of old Mrs. Burton many years before. . . . Whitney does manage to tie together most of these elements, leaving a few loose ends strewn around presumably for effect; and if the characters have as much dimension as so many pieces of shirt cardboard, it's impossible to imagine real people involving themselves with such ersatz stage business. Worth about three quarters of an hour, tops.

Pub Date: April 2, 1973

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Westminster

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1973

Categories: FICTION